I am still trying to measure the real impact of my Paris-Nice win. You can't get much more historic than winning on the Col d'Eze as I did on Sunday, and it will take a while to sink in. It leaves me well and truly on track for the Tour. I don't believe any of that stuff about peaking too early. I went into Paris-Nice with the form I had. We had a plan, I'm not ahead of it, but there are still some areas to work on. My trainers have pushed me hard all winter with a view to peaking for July and I think I'm at about 95% of my potential now. The rest will come from the work I do between now and July.

It's more realistic that I can win the Tour now. I said during the week that Paris-Nice, for all the respect I have for it, is a stepping stone. If I'm capable of winning it, I'm capable of winning the Tour de France. I've now won the two biggest stage races in France. There is no longer any question of my fourth place in the Tour in 2009 being a fluke.

In terms of measuring my career, there is only one race left and that is the Tour. I have no doubt about it now. The more consistent I become in gaining world-class results the less doubt there is in my mind. That showed in the time trial on Sunday. I knew what I had to do and I knew that no one could challenge me if I got out the ride I was capable of doing. The key difference is that it's happening on a regular basis now.

There are plenty of things I can take from this win. I survived the cold – at Mende it never got above zero all day – I rode well in the prologue on a wet day, got in the lead group the next day at Orleans, and took third up the climb at Mende on the Thursday, on a climb which wouldn't have suited me in the past. I wasn't hanging on there: I was driving it for the last kilometre and a half with riders like [Levi] Leipheimer and [Alejandro] Valverde on my wheel. And in that time trial on Sunday, behind me and [Lieuwe] Westra the gaps were big – 52sec to Valverde, 1min 2sec to Andreas Kloden.

It's a massive relief to put it together after all the work the team put in all week for me. My Sky team-mates were great. They showed huge faith in me and rode their hearts out. It's not simple defending a lead of only six seconds for a whole week, so I have to give them my sincerest thanks.

You can't underestimate how much a week like the last one demands of a team, mentally as well as physically. Television coverage doesn't always show what goes on early in the stages. On Friday the race had split into six groups after five kilometres in the cross winds, I was in the front group that stayed away for 50km with Valverde around a minute behind. They caught us, two guys got away, everyone stopped for a pee, so they pulled away, and then the television came on, so the early action was missed entirely.

There is simply no let-up when you have a lead that tight. There is always the worry about needing to stay out of trouble in the final 20 kilometres of even a routine stage, because it would be so easy just to lose five or six seconds due to even a small split in the bunch. But I'm becoming more confident in the role: everyone has confidence in you, even other riders, which shows at times like when you stop for a pee and everyone else stops as well.

As race leader, after the stages, you are dragged left and right: doping control, press conference, live television. You never go back to the hotel on the team bus, because you have to stick around the finish far longer than the other guys. You feel that everyone is looking at you, all the time. You can enjoy it to a degree, but it's a strain. Having said that, I've had a few goes at it now, and it's getting easier.

After a couple of days off, I will head for the Tour of Catalonia, which starts early next week. I'm going to be on the road a good deal in the next couple of months, as after that I go into my first pre-Tour de France high altitude training camp, so at Catalonia mentally I will try to take my foot off the gas, probably playing a team role, riding on the front of the bunch, working for whoever needs it among the team. That should mean I can keep the pressure off while still doing the physical work that I need to do. Phase one of my buildup to the Tour de France is over now. That consisted of getting a really good winter under my belt, and hitting my early season targets. The next step is preparing towards the Tour.